Public Overview of Scientific Activities

Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU) is the leading academic and research institution in the field of medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, rehabilitation, and nursing science in the Republic of Latvia.

RSU carries out significant studies in various fields of social, humanitarian and legal sciences, as well as in technical sciences in relation to their application in medicine. In 2016, RSU acted as a derived public person supervised by the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Latvia.

Long-term objective of RSU activities

To become a research university renowned in Europe and all over the world, a global intellectual centre

RSU vision

A modern, prestigious university renowned in Europe and all over the world, whose main value is an individual (RSU Science Institute Development Strategy 2015-2020)

Medium-term objective of RSU activities

Offer and implement an extensive academic and professional university education, as well as research opportunities in the following basic fields – medicine, health and social care, teaching, social sciences and natural sciences (Article 2.2 of the RSU Constitution)

RSU functions and tasks

RSU functions

• Scientific studies in the priority directions
• Approbation of new research technologies in the research process
• Solving of tasks important to society within the framework of RSU competence, providing contribution to research for the prevention and control of diseases threatening public health, environmental and other risks
• Implementation of RSU intellectual property management policy
• Cooperation with the private sector in research, education, and in other state-supported fields of partnership
• Development of innovations in the priority areas of RSU
• Training of high-quality specialists in the fields of health care and social sciences for Latvia, European Union and the entire global society, so that the knowledge, skills, and outlook obtained during the studies would correspond to the highest EU requirements and humanistic traditions and that they would create a stable basis for life-long education
• Provision of continuing and life-long education, including certified professions, supporting the transfer of knowledge to public and private sectors
• Promotion of scientific, educational and cultural achievements to the general public, inspiring the younger generation to dedicate their life to medicine and other priority areas of RSU
• Maintenance of scientific infrastructure and implementation of activities aimed at establishing a National Research Centre for Public Health and Clinical Medicine with the status of a leading institution

RSU tasks (Article 2.3 of RSU Constitution)

• Ensure the indivisibility of academic and research work, the opportunity to acquire knowledge, academic education and professional skills, academic and scientific degrees, and professional qualifications
• Develop curricula, select academic staff, set up clinics, scientific and training laboratories, training pharmacies, a library, and other structures to enable students to acquire knowledge, academic education and professional skills according to the level of scientific development in a potentially concentrated and academically rigorous manner. Provide curricula, test and examination requirements that would enable the awarding of degrees and titles, diplomas and professional qualifications, and to master curricula that would be mutually recognised by Latvian and foreign universities
• Promote further educational studies and take part in further educational activities, develop a residency section. Cooperate with other higher educational institutions, research and educational institutions. Contribute to the exchange of students and academic staff between Latvian and foreign higher educational institutions
• Organise work in the public interest, identifying the current interests of society, and inform society of the activities, the directions and possibilities of studies and scientific research, promoting the choice of academic and research activities based on the individual’s interests and abilities. Offer scientific and professional knowledge, methods and research results obtained to the general public
• Ensure the preparation of young scientists and enable them to integrate into global academic and research processes
• Guarantee the academic freedom of academic staff and students

RSU Research Institute development strategy

The final version of the RSU Senate strategy was approved on 16 February 2016. It was supported by the Strategic Council of the Ministry of Health on 17 November 2016. The Higher Educational and Research Institution Developmental Strategy Assessment Commission of the Ministry of Education and Science approved the strategy by a decision adopted on 29 May 2017.

RSU priority research areas according to the Research Programme

Pillars	Clinical Medicine		Biomedicine			Rehabilitation	Public Health
Research Basics	Molecular Medicine		Structural Biology			Research Methodology	Social / Cultural / Environmental / Public Health
Leading Areas of Research	Oncology
	Infectious Diseases and Immunology
	Occupational Diseases				Occupational and Environmental Health
	Regenerative Medicine, Tissue Bioengineering
Growth Sectors	Technologies of Dosage Forms (Pharmaceuticals)
					Rehabilitation and the Ageing of Society
					Chronic Diseases and Therapy Algorythms
	Neuroscience / Human Brain Disease Research
	Maternal and Child Health
	Nuclear Medicine, Radiology and Advanced Visualisation Techniques
					Social Sciences and Humanities
Transveral Sectors	Anatomy, Embryology, Histology, Pathology, Structural Biology
	Anesthesiology and Intensive Care
	Emergency and Military Medicine
					Health Care Science
					Public Health
							Social Policy

Human resources

Scientific activities in fields corresponding to the RSU profile are carried out under the supervision of 66 professors. At the end of the academic year 2016/2017 RSU-elected permanent academic staff consisted of 530 people, 392 of whom had a scientific degree, 303/224 as expressed in full-time equivalents.

Number of scientific staff and employees at RSU (in full time equivalents):

Year	Scientific staff	Scientific technical staff	Scientific administrative staff
2016	84.08	47.91	56.17

Including 10.29 in full time equivalents – elected scientific staff in projects

The number of new scientists – 186 (35% compared to the number of scientific and academic staff)

Sources of funding for research at RSU

• European Union ESF and ERDF Structural Funds
• European Union framework programmes
• Funding of COST activities by the European Science Foundation
• National funding for ERA-NET project implementation
• Core funding
• The university funding process
• Funding provided for scientific work under residency programmes
• National research programmes (NRPs)
• Latvian Council of Science (LCS) funding for fundamental and applied research projects
• LCS cooperation projects
• Research-related contract work
• INTERREG
• Funding from other research customers
• Benefactors’ support
• Baltic Bonus programme

Total funding for RSU scientific activities in 2016 – 3,995,721.00 EUR

Sources of funding (EUR) for research

• University funding for science (internal grant programme from self-earned funds) – 223,184.00
• RTU-RSU grants – 94,369.00
• Core funding – 1,266,609.00
• LCS – 105,718.00
• NRP – 408,651.00
• Contract works – 152,048.00
• EU framework programmes – 878,026.00
• Funding from international projects/EU structural funds – 796,121.00
• ERA-NET – 784.00
• COST – 52,650.00
• Other international organisations – 17,561.00

Indirect/other funding

Supporting funding (direct costs in EUR)

• University funding to purchase books – 20,000
• Funding from RSU Technology Transfer Office – 28,000
• Funding from RSU Innovation Centre of Medical Engineering – 300

Direct revenues of structural units from sales of scientific and research services

• Costs of Experimental Animal Farm – 44,947

RSU Institute of Dentistry

• Commercial revenues of 2016 are shown in the balance sheet of the Limited Liability Company

Organisation of research activities in RSU

In 2016, research was carried out in six European Union framework programmes (one FP7, five Horizon2020 projects), one COST project was coordinated (the only COST coordination in Latvia), participation in six COST projects, in one LCS fundamental and applied research project, one LCS collaboration project with RSU as the leading partner, three National Research Programmes, one bilateral collaboration project with US NSF Funding. ERA-NET HIVERA project on HIV/AIDS research was implemented. In addition, the research activities included many smaller projects that are listed in the thematic sections of the overview.

The cooperation agreement concluded in 2014 between the Boris and Inara Teterev Foundation and RSU established Boris and Inara Teterev Foundation's targeted scholarship to raise the RSU lecturers’ international citation index, which is applicable in 2016.

RSU has five doctoral programmes – in medicine, pharmacy, sociology, legal science, and political science. There were 214 doctoral students in 2016.

RSU had 8 degree committees in 2016: in basic medical sciences, internal medicine, surgery, dentistry, pharmacy, sociology, law and political science.

Statistical data about doctorate

Sector	Year
	2009		2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Medicine	10		7	23	17	22	21	13	10
Dentistry	5		3	5	2	4	1	2	2
Pharmacy	0		0	2	0	2	1	2	0
Sociology	0		1	3	2	2	2	1	1
Legal studies	The Council started work in 2011				1	0	3	6	2
Political science	The Council started work in 2013					1	2	0	0
Total	15	11		33	22	31	30	24	15

Main research results

The total number of publications by RSU staff in 2016 – 1,833, including 19 monographs, 38 books, 210 articles in internationally recognised and anonymously reviewed issues. The total number of articles in national issues – 530. 863 proceedings in the collections of international scientific conferences (457) and national (406) scientific conferences were published.

International citation indexes contain 175 publications (excluding conference proceedings)

• ISI WEB OF KNOWLEDGE (SCI)
• SCOPUS
• PUBMED

Research results in registration of industrial property rights for 6 patents in Latvia and one design. 6 patent applications were filed, including 2 patent applications using the PCT procedure.

RSU is characterised by long-term high-quality and intensive students’ research work. The Students’ Scientific Society of RSU has been active for more than 60 years. Since 2015, its functions have been executed by the Science Department of the Students’ Council consisting of 24 students’ scientific groups with 600 members. The Annual International Student Scientific Conference of RSU held on 16 March 2016 was organised at an international level; with 1,110 participants from 12 countries and presentations of 373 scientific studies in health care and 27 scientific studies in social sciences.

Valuable contributions to science were made by resident physicians. The scientific practical conference of resident physicians and the competition "Current issues in Medicine" took place on 11 May 2016 in the RSU Hall. 11 best research works out of 95 were presented (17 works were submitted for the competition). A significant increase in the quality of scientific works developed by resident physicians and submitted to the conference competition was noted – some resident physicians continue their research in doctoral studies, thus ensuring the full capacity in medical research in synergy between the physician and doctor of science.

The RSU Scientific Conference 2016 was held in 8 sections on 17 and 18 March 2016. 354 reports were presented with 799 authors participating; the total number of participants (authors and audience) was 1,215.

RSU publishes collections of scientific articles in the university's fields of activity. The collection is published as a series in Latvian and English. The collection of articles in the medical series published in 2016 contained 44 articles in Latvian and 12 articles in English, and 6 articles in the social science series.

Support for research activities at RSU

The research activities at RSU are supported by the RSU Library and the World Health Organisation's Depositary Library. Access to global information resources is provided by the Information Technology Department. In 2009 the Scientific Medical Library was merged with the RSU Library.

The RSU Intellectual Property Management Policy approved by the Senate decision in 2008 was introduced in 2016; and work continued in accordance with Industrial Intellectual Property Management Regulation, which is the framework document of the RSU Technology Transfer Office. RSU Medical Equipment Innovation Centre continued its activities in 2016 as an innovation support unit in Latvia.

An agreement was signed at the end of 2011 aiming to ensure implementation of project 2011/0043/3DP/2.2.2.3.1./11/IPIA/VIAA/003 under ERDF activity Modernisation of Scientific Infrastructure. It resulted in the foundation of the Research Centre for Public Health and Clinical Medicine. The scientific centre Kleisti, which is the most recent modernised unit in this project, was opened on 11 December 2016.

In 2016 RSU launched the new Horizon2020 project VACTRAIN Twinning on DNA-based cancer vaccines, which is the only Horizon2020 project in the Widening programme in the field of biology and medicine in Latvia. Therefore RSU has proved its high competitive capacity.

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